Putting Medini on the map. The New Kuala Lumpur?

Issue 99 December 2012

With a fantastic strategic location (50 minutes away from Singapore’s Changi airport, 40 minutes away from Singapore’s central business district, Medini looks set to become a prime asset in Malaysia’s economic and tourist industries.

I sat down and had a chat with Keith Martin, CEO of Global Capital and Developments – the company spearheading the development of Medini, Iskander, Malaysia.

With a fantastic strategic location (50 minutes away from Singapore’s Changi airport, 40 minutes away from Singapore’s central business district, 40 minutes by air from Kuala-Lumpur and 20 minutes from Johor Bahru – Medini looks set to become a prime asset in Malaysia’s economic and tourist industries.

Martin explains that there is clearly a growth in the Malaysian economy as well as an expanding population in the globally recognised city of Singapore. Singapore has now reached a pinnacle in its expansion and as a direct result, land costs have reached a peak. To put it bluntly, it is an island that has run out of space.In recent years the partnership between Malaysia and Singapore has accelerated; Singapore’s investment company, Temasek, and the Malaysian counterpart investment company, Khazanah, have merged and are heading the construction of Medini together – money is being spent together, and the two affluent companies are taking development risks together also.

The establishment of Medini further extends to transport links; both transport authorities from Malaysia and Singapore have joint forces to look at a new rail crossing between Singapore and Johor. A further development includes a high-speed rail from Iskander to Malaysia’s capital, Kuala-Lumpur, with the journey calculated at taking 90minutes (at the moment it is over an hour by air). A staggering $30billion has been secured in investment for Iskander – the venture is sure to be a success.

With theme parks, water parks and a marina set to be built near to the famous Legoland that has already put Medini on the map, Martin is sure to affirm that they cannot rely solely on entertainment. A variety of housing is also in the pipeline – from villas to high-rise apartments – properties that are looking increasingly attractive to Singaporeans due to them being more financially viable.

In comparison to the traditional dense cities of Kuala-Lumpur and Singapore, Martin feels as though Medini offers something different – something with a more green, suburban feel. Within the next few years Medini is set to sky-rocket in terms of property and entertainment and as a direct result, become a substantial jewel in Malaysia’s tourism crown. The greatest cities in the world all started somewhere – remember, Rome wasn’t built in a day.